Know When Your Pump Is Dead

Too often, homeowners don’t discover a sump pump failure until they see the damage. But there are ways to avoid that: If you buy a new AC sump pump run by a controller, it’ll have some type of alarm to let you know if the pump fails or the power goes out. The same holds true for most new battery-powered systems.

LOCAL ALARM. Detects water at the top of the sump basket using either a probe or a float and sounds an audible alarm (such as the BWD-HWA Basement Watchdog Water Sensor and Alarm; $15 at home centers). Local alarms are great if someone is home at the time of the failure.

VERBAL MESSAGE VIA LANDLINE. Detects water at the sump and dials a pre programmed phone number and plays a recorded message (one choice is the Control Products WA-700 Water Alarm; $55 at homesecuritystore.com). Also sounds an audible alarm. Must have a landline.

TEXT MESSAGING. Detects water at the sump and sends a text to three different cell phones (one choice is the Blue Angel BCPA1; $189). Requires an adequate Verizon signal at the sump pump and a $4 monthly fee. Find a dealer at blueangelpumps.com.